On the expensive side. Some cheap elements. Awkward execution of 3.5-inch bays.

Bottom Line

The NZXT Switch 810 is a good-looking full-tower PC case, but some of its features keep it from being worth its full price.

Given that the component market is saturated with black cases, it can be easy to let your eye linger too long on the few that are another color. But some deserve a longer glance—if not a lingering one—and the NZXT Switch 810 would fall into that category. Beyond its dazzling white-and-black design, this case is notable for its luxurious roominess, its thoughtful layout primed for cooling, and its steep-ish price ($169.99 list). Unfortunately, the case also suffers from some stumbles that keep it from being entirely worth all that money, and that will risk annoying the enthusiasts it’s so overtly courting.

But for those who want a smart- and unusual-looking case first and foremost, the Switch 810 fits the bill. Sticking with NZXT’s slightly more restrained and refined aesthetic, it’s big on polygons, with its combination of white steel, white plastic, and black plastic diverging into sharp, angular forms on the front panel and on the side panel’s window. The contrast of the colors, which continues inside the case as well, is striking, and something style-conscious builders are sure to appreciate. (For the record, the Shift 810 also comes in an all-black model.)

Though the interior looks just as good, it’s even more thoughtful. It boasts a lot of features that have become increasingly common on NZXT and other gaming-oriented cases in recent years: a hole cut in the motherboard tray to facilitate the installation of an aftermarket CPU cooler, ten grommeted channels to speed the organization of cables and wires to improve appearance and airflow, more grommeted openings in the rear panel for routing piping for liquid coolers, and completely tool-free construction on the three available (of four) 5.25-inch drive bays and nine expansion slots. Six rubberized feet on the floor of the case, which is fully vented by use of two removable filtered panels for easily cleaning, help elevate your power supply so air can better move beneath it.

NZXT has also implemented some other ideas that you don’t see in every case, but tend to be nice when they appear. There are two removable internal 3.5-inch drive cages, each of which can hold up to three drives. In addition to two 140mm exhaust fans (one in the rear panel and one in the top panel) and one 140mm intake fan (near the middle of the front panel), the Switch 810 also comes with one 140mm fan that attaches to the inside of the upper 3.5-inch drive bay. This fan can either blow straight ahead toward your video cards, or be tilted upward about 30 degrees to aim its air more directly at the CPU. In addition to there being sufficient room for housing the longest video cards on the market (such as the AMD Radeon HD 6990), approximately 3.5 inches of space above the motherboard makes it possible to install a full-size radiator for liquid cooling, and there's almost as much behind the power supply bay for installing other related paraphernalia (like an internal pump or reservoir).

The selection of front-panel ports is not on the adventurous side, but it more than suffices. You get two USB 2.0 ports, two USB 3.0 ports, an SD card reader, and headphone and microphone jacks alongside the reset button and a control for the case's LED lighting. (The power button is located on the top of the case.) Measuring 23.4 by 9.3 by 23 inches (HWD) and offering nearly an inch of space below the motherboard for routing cables and wires, the Switch 810 is not hurting for space, and we didn't run into any space snags when installing our test components.

We did, however, have some serious issues with the Switch 810's construction. As attractive as it is, using it is not as effortless as we prefer. Just opening the case was a headache, as both doors lack handles that might make it easier to pry off the panels if they don't come free easily (as ours didn't). The top of the case is adorned with a plastic panel containing 13 vents that you can open or close with a switch near the rear end. The theory behind this is good: that you can choose whether you want to focus more on ventilation or noise reduction. But the panel itself is flimsy, and seemed to come off every two or three minutes we were working with the case. (Applying any pressure to the panel sends it flying off, and try opening or moving any case without doing that.) The removable bottom-front panel is a little better because of its position, but looks just as cheap and comes off just as easily at the wrong moments.

We also didn't love the Switch 810's handling of 3.5-inch bays. The one hot-swappable bay (complete with 6Gbps SATA III) occupying the lowest 5.25-inch external bay was a nice touch, but we found it too difficult to remove to bother with on a regular basis. Worse were the internal bays. Although we liked how easy the cages were to pull out (the two flip-up handles help quite a bit), they're oriented so the trays themselves pull out toward the back—meaning through the panel opposite the one you'll open to install everything else. If you're fastidious about arranging wires and routing cables, you won't mind this during your initial install. But if you want to add or replace drives at the same time you're working with other components, you need to open both sides of the case, which cancels out the cage's inconvenience. Poor placement of the trays' screw holes means that when installing a 2.5-inch drive you can't use a 90-degree SATA cable—another needless hassle.

Although the NZXT Switch 810 will appeal to those who value form, its dedication to function is lacking more than is ideal for relentless builders and tweakers. If you're paying upwards of $150, your case shouldn't have as much trip-up potential as this one does. Our Editors' Choice Thermaltake Chaser MK-I costs slightly less ($159 list) but provides almost as much in the way of features (removable hard drive cages being the notable exception) and is much sturdier; in our books, that's worth a look that caters more to gamers. There's a lot of maturity and promise in the Switch 810's design, but that's only likely to be enough for those who see their desktops as art objects first and foremost.

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About the Author

Matthew Murray got his humble start leading a technology-sensitive life in elementary school, where he struggled to satisfy his ravenous hunger for computers, computer games, and writing book reports in Integer BASIC. He earned his B.A. in Dramatic Writing at Western Washington University, where he also minored in Web design and German. He has been... See Full Bio

NZXT Switch 810

NZXT Switch 810

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